One way to keep those heating bills down and still have a warm home is by improved insulation. In Orkney, Warmworks supports householders design and fund improvements to their energy needs.
Warmworks is appointed by Orkney Islands Council to carry out the Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme (EES:ABS) which has now been boosted by additional Scottish Government funding of £600,000 to take it up to £2.1m for 2022-23.
Warmworks’ Chief Executive, Ross Armstrong, said:
“We know the pressures people are facing when it comes to their energy bills and staying warm at home, and this extra funding will help us to meet the high demand we’ve seen for our services this year.
” The extension of our partnership with Orkney Islands Council to manage the EES:ABS scheme for a further year is a welcome endorsement of the approach we’ve taken, which has seen us work closely with the local community to make sure that the energy efficiency upgrades available are targeted towards those most in need of support.
“Our team will be working hard to deliver these heating and insulation works to our existing customers with this increased funding, and they are happy to speak to local householders about applications to the scheme.”
Work is carried out by local contractors. The funds are for any private householder experiencing difficulties with their heating costs – and could pay for over £10k in measures such as insulation and upgraded storage heaters. The first stage is to contact Warmworks and then they send out someone to assess your requirements. They are extremely helpful and will talk you through all the details as well as conducting a survey of your home. .
Contact the team by email orkney@warmworks.co.uk or by phoning 01856 881513 or Freephone 0800 038 6022 – or drop into their office at The Store, 5 West Tankerness Lane, Kirkwall KW15 1AL.
Increasing the Number of Affordable Homes
The Scottish Government has also increased investment in affordable homes through £105million in The Charitable Bond Scheme.
The Charitable Bond programme provides loans to social landlords, with the interest then reinvested as grants into the social rented sector, further increasing housing supply.
The Scottish Charitable Bond programme provides loans to housing associations in Scotland for the development of new affordable homes.
The programme uses funding from the Scottish Government to make unsecured loans, starting from £1m, for a term of up to 15 years.
There’s added social benefit, as interest on the loans provides grant funding which Scottish Government allocates to support further social housing development – keeping the money within the sector.
Scottish Charitable Bonds
Categories: Local News
